AdFreak

Schweppes brings 1950s Christmases to life

Mother London adds live-action arms and hands (along with some goofy and mildly smutty humor) to classic 1950s Christmas illustrations in these amusing 10-second spots for Schweppes tonic water in the U.K. The voice talent includes Martin Freeman, who played Tim on The Office. The best line has to be: "Don and Tabitha, you're just in time. I'm about to hose down Felicity!" Via The Inspiration Room.

—Posted by Tim Nudd

Shake your big percussive butt for Orangina

Video is NSFW.

Continuing with the butt theme, here's an absurd, NSFW video from Orangina featuring some impressive butt shaking, butt slapping and butt clapping. It advertises the drink brand's "Shake That Orangina" contest, which asks you to upload a video of yourself dancing (not just butt clapping) for a chance to become an official "Shake Star" of Orangina. As a Shake Star, you will "appear on posters, billboards, flyers, online videos and more" and "have the opportunity to travel around the globe to witness firsthand your rising star in the dance world." Via Animal New York.

—Posted by Tim Nudd

Previously on AdFreak:
Orangina animals go from sexy to annoying
Orangina gives pinup animals sex appeal

Glasses that look great on all kinds of asses

It's tough to know what to say about these Italian print ads for Glassing Sunglasses, but I'll try. Some might find it objectionable, but it's offensive in a cartoony, memorable way, like naughty Mad magazine illustrations from 20 years ago, so folks might want to lighten up. Some Web commenters have bashed the ads for implying that people who wear the sunglasses are asses, but that's probably too literal of a read (though, based on my experience with those who wear shades as a fashion accessory, quite accurate). Maybe it's spec, but since it advertises specs, that's probably alright, too. Sure, it's easily dismissed as being odd for odd's sake, but there's nothing wrong with that, since catching consumers' attention is half the battle. It'll crack some people up, I'm sure. Beyond that, I'm wiping my hands of it. Via Ads of the World, which credits Y&R for the campaign.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Fighting tooth and nail for a flack internship

I don't envy new grads trying to break into marketing and advertising. The intense competition for entry-level jobs is apparently forcing our next generation of leaders to humiliate themselves for the right to do menial tasks. Advertising Week created an entire entertainment program out of it, making would-be creatives jump through hoops for the promise of a 30-day freelance gig at entry-level pay. Now, unsurprisingly, public relations is getting in on the act. Eisen Marketing Group, which bills itself as "Cincinnati's largest PR firm," is holding a reality-TV-style competition to hire a single "PR rockstar." Recent grads apply at the Eisen Web site for the honor of being one of a dozen contestants subjected to three weeks of "PR hell" starting in January. Naturally, the humiliation will be aired as Webisodes that Eisen says will follow in the tradition of The Apprentice and Survivor. I imagine one of the challenges will be to find the most creative way to say, "I'm calling to follow up on an e-mail I sent you." The winner gets a paid internship. I can't help but wonder if these kinds of stunts, which arise out of a crappy economy and high unemployment rate, breed resentment from serious candidates looking to build careers.

—Posted by Brian Morrissey

Previously on AdFreak:
The Big Ad Gig offers hope to the desperate

Ohio Lottery gets crafty with its holiday ads

Speaking of nutty holiday ad characters, Northlich introduces an overeager arts-and-crafts enthusiast in its new spots for the Ohio Lottery. One ad is posted below; see a bunch more here. The theme is "Makin' It Fun With Maggie." But in Ohio, as in Illinois and every other state, lottery tickets just aren't much fun as gifts. If they're losers, it's like not getting a present at all. If they're winners, it's worse, because then you feel obliged to share, since the giver will be pissed off if he doesn't get a cut. Ohio tickets are especially bad, because you have to go to places like Cleveland to collect. And folks who live there can't afford to move because they waste all their cash on lottery tickets. Look, I'm a grinch, and I usually don't give a sh*t for the holidays. But this year, thanks to Oxfam, I just might.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

Previously on AdFreak:
Oxfam's holiday PSA asks you to give a sh*t
Illinois Lottery joying people at the holidays

Target's 2-Day Sale lady totally frightens me

Target is attempting to lure shoppers to its annual two-day sale with a cautionary tale about a Christmas-crazed housewife. Overzealous holiday shoppers are a fairly common theme, but rarely are they as serial-killery as this lady. She hasn't slept in days, she's convinced she'll "win Christmas," and I hope to God she doesn't knife me if I get to the doorbusters before her. The spot below is one of a series. Check out the other ads here. The actress, Maria Bamford, has that special kind of Christmas-crazy down pat. (Bamford is known for her stand-up jokes about depression and loneliness, which comes as no surprise whatsoever.) Target must have realized she'd frighten some shoppers, because they made another spot for people who don't "channel all their insecurities into Christmas." Unfortunately, Target has also just reminded me why I hate Black Friday: having to elbow my way through a store of people just as bat-shit as their spokeswoman while praying I don't get trampled to death. Agency: Wieden + Kennedy.

—Posted by Rebecca Cullers

Yahoo! knows that life isn't fun for creatives

For anyone in the advertising business, particularly those on the creative side, this Yahoo! video surely hits close to home. It touches on the big three broad ad caricatures: the cheesy, spineless account guy, the faux hipster creatives and the unreasonable clients. A personal favorite moment is when one client says, "My whole thing is, Are people going to tweet about this? What's the tweet factor here, guys?" The other adds: "I don't even know what tweeting means, but this isn't going to make me want to do it."

—Posted by Brian Morrissey

Stunt buddha jumps Benihana shrimp buffet

Benihana was hot in the '70s when it was a novelty for chefs to prepare food at your table. That's not so special now, and neither is this "Big Jump" spot via Wieden + Kennedy and Matt Lenski of Epoch Films. They use tiki-mug figurines to tell the tale of a self-styled Buddah Knievel with a salad-cycle who leaps over a spread of shrimp. This isn't nearly as wild as a real Asian ad would be, and it's undercooked as a parody/homage. Now, if the cycle guy crashed into the condiment tray, à la Gary Wells, and played a dramatic death scene in a pool of soy-sauce blood, as tattooed salt-and-pepper-shaker Yakuza blew everyone away with chopstick machine guns … now you're talking! And a broccoli-stalk Godzilla wouldn't hurt. Maybe Japanophile director Quentin Tarantino could spice up the next spot.

—Posted by David Gianatasio

'War on Christmas' army attacking Best Buy

The holiday season means traditions. One of the more recent that's fun to watch is the "war on Christmas," with advertisers taking flak for being too inclusive in their holiday messaging. Of course, they just want to sell more stuff. But that hasn't stopped the vigilant WOC shocktroops from going after Gap for having the temerity to urge people to have whatever kind of holiday they want ("Go Christmas, Go Hanukkah, Go Kwanzaa, Go solstice ... go Christmas, go Hanukkah, go whatever holiday you Wannukuh"), an effort that's offensive more for its schmaltziness than anything else. Now, Best Buy is in the crosshairs. The mistake: a lowly circular that says Best Buy offers good cheer for the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha. It turns out the retailer has scrubbed any mention of Christmas from its advertising, presenting an interesting double standard. One thing is for sure: There's a fair chance Best Buy is in line for plenty of free media from people like Bill O'Reilly. All those shots of the circular can only drive awareness of those $397 HD televisions. Maybe this is an ingenious viral marketing stunt cooked up by Crispin Porter + Bogusky. I smell an Effie.

—Posted by Brian Morrissey

Previously on AdFreak:
Americans say humbug to 'Happy holidays'

10 best celebrity computer ads of the 1980s

When geek-culture blog Topless Robot dug up the Prime Computer ads above, from 1980, featuring Tom Baker's classic incarnation of Dr. Who (and his equally classic sidekick, Lalla Ward as Romana), I was shocked to see they were actually great commercials. They're clever, endearing and memorable—even if they do oversell the machine's capabilities by a light year or two. In short, these ads are everything that most vintage computer ads weren't, especially ones that involved celebrities. Click here to check out our picks for the top 10 celebrity computer ads of the 1980s.

—Posted by David Griner